Masala Chai

Method

1. 01

   Step 1: Crack the spices

   Break the cardamom pods open in a mortar, crack the peppercorns, snap the cinnamon. Do not grind them to powder: you want fissures for the oils to escape through, not dust.

2. 02

   Step 2: Simmer them in water

   Cover the spices and ginger with 500 ml of water, bring to the boil and simmer gently for 5–7 minutes. The water turns visibly golden and starts to smell of chai.

3. 03

   Step 3: Add the tea

   Add the leaves and boil for exactly 2 minutes. Longer draws tannins out of the leaf and the chai turns astringent and bitter — milk will not fix that.

4. 04

   Step 4: Pour in the milk

   Add the milk and heat until the foam climbs to the rim of the pan. Take it off the heat immediately.

5. 05

   Step 5: Raise it three times

   Return it to the heat and let it rise twice more. Each rise knocks the foam back, concentrates the flavour and marries the spices to the milk fat — this is where chai gets its body.

6. 06

   Step 6: Sweeten

   Stir in the sugar until dissolved. Sugar is not optional in chai: it pulls the spice aroma forward the way salt does in savoury cooking.

7. 07

   Step 7: Strain and serve

   Pass it through a fine sieve into glasses. Pouring it from a height between two jugs two or three times gives the same foamy head as a street chaiwala.